Recipe

Lemon Brownies

Two of my favorite cooks right now are not celebrity chefs at all. They’re both famous, but their real off camera passion in life is cooking! Actress Jennifer Garner is an A-lister on the big screen, but have you seen her cooking videos on Facebook? They’re adorable. She calls them her Pretend Cooking Show, and in the videos she shares her successes, failures and her complete child-like zeal for whisking up something wonderful. (More about her recipes in upcoming columns.) My second favorite cook right now is former talk show host Jenny Jones. (Jennycancook.com)

While she loves to cook, I get the sense that she gets an even bigger kick out of teaching cooking. Her kitchen isn’t fancy. She uses plastic bowls. Her appliances aren’t the latest or greatest, but she absolutely loves food! Good Food. Healthy Food. Real Food. When I watched her bake up her One Bowl Lemon Brownies, I knew this recipe was going to be a favorite. Her brownies call for pastry flour, but I’ve also made them with regular flour, and while they’re not as light and fluffy, they are just as tasty. One of the secrets to their delicious flavor is the lemon zest and for this recipe she uses a lot. For the glaze, it doesn’t get any easier than three ingredients which add the perfect, refreshing citrusy sweetness! I think the kitchen is the most wonderful place to play, and share and make happy moments. Jennifer Garner and Jenny Jones capture all of that with step by step fun!

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8 X 8 or 9 x9 baking pan.) I use a 9 x 13 baking sheet with a one inch lip for thinner brownies.) In a bowl mix by hand the flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, eggs, yogurt or sour cream, vegetable oil, lemon zest and lemon juice. Stir until smooth, about 30 seconds. Spread batter in pan and bake for 20 minutes. Brownies should be cooked through but still light on top. Remove from oven and cool in the pan for 5-10 minutes. Spread glaze over warm brownies.

For the Glaze:

In a medium bowl, stir together the powdered sugar, lemon zest and lemon juice. If too thin, add more powdered sugar. Drizzle or spread evenly over warm brownies. Let glaze firm up and then cut into squares.